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Asa S. Bloomer
Asa S. Bloomer (August 15, 1891 – February 21, 1963) was a Vermont politician and lawyer who served as Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives and President Pro Tem of the Vermont Senate. Early life Asa Schoonmaker "Ace" Bloomer was born in Proctor, Vermont on August 15, 1891. He graduated from the University of Vermont in 1913 and received a law degree from Yale Law School in 1916, afterwards practicing law in Rutland County.Vermont Legislative Directory, published by Vermont Secretary of State, 1947, page 414 World War I He enlisted in the Army for World War I and received a commission as a Second Lieutenant of Aviation. Bloomer served in Nebraska, Ohio and Texas before being discharged in December, 1918.U.S. Adjutant General Military Records, 1631-1976, record for Asa Schoonmacker Bloomer, accessed via Ancestry.com, March 24, 2012World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, record for Asa S. Bloomer, accessed via Ancestry.com, March 24, 2012 Rutland County State's Attorney A Republican, Bloomer was Rutland County State's Attorney from 1935 to 1937. During his term he garnered nationwide headlines when he indicted Governor Charles M. Smith. Smith had been President of Rutland's Marble Bank, and was accused with other bank officers of defrauding depositors. (In May 1932 Smith learned that his bank's bookeeper had embezzled $251,000. Smith let the bookkeeper resign, did not disclose the theft, and charged the loss against the bank's surplus. In July 1935 the bookkeeper was named Rutland's Assistant City Treasurer and planned a candidacy for Treasurer. His political opponents then leaked word of the theft to the press. In December, 1935 Bloomer charged Smith and other bank officers with abetting the theft for failing to inform account holders and authorities. The bookkeeper was convicted, and the bank Treasurer received a suspended sentence and paid a $400 fine. Charges against some other officers were dismissed. Smith was acquitted at trial)Newspaper article, Governor Named in Connection With Bank Thefts, by Associated Press, Reno Gazette, November 30, 1936Newspaper article, Gov. Smith is Acquitted, by Associated Press, Lowell Sun, December 2, 1936 Bloomer also brought charges against a Proctor, Vermont selectman for neglect of duty after the town sided with management and refused to provide emergency aid to the children of striking workers at the Vermont Marble Company.The Star That Set: The Vermont Republican Party, 1854-1974, by Samuel B. Hand, 2003, page 155 Vermont House of Representatives In 1936 Bloomer ran successfully for the Vermont House of Representatives and served four terms, 1937 to 1945. In his final term (1943 to 1945) Bloomer served as Speaker of the House.Speakers Ballot Votes, 1915 to 2003, published by Vermont House of Representatives, 2003Vermont Legislative Directory and State Manual, published by Vermont Secretary of State, 1959, page 793 Bloomer ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination to be Lieutenant Governor in 1944, losing to Lee E. Emerson, who went on to win the general election.1944 Republican Primary Election Results, published by Vermont Secretary of State, Archives and Records Administration, 2006, page 1 Vermont Senate Bloomer ran successfully for the Vermont Senate in 1946, and he was reelected eight times, serving from 1947 to his death. He was President Pro Tem of the Senate in 1949, 1955, and 1959 until his death.Newspaper article, Bloomer Was State's Best Known Solon, by Associated Press, published in Bennington Banner, February 22, 1963List of Vermont Senate Presidents Pro Tempore, published by Vermont State Senate, 2012 Death and burial Bloomer died at Montpelier's Heaton Hospital on February 21, 1963 after suffering a heart attack at the Vermont State House. He was buried in Rutland's Evergreen Cemetery.Vermont Death Records, 1909-2008, record for Asa Schoonmaker Bloomer, accessed via Ancestry.com, March 24, 2012Gravestone photos, Find A Grave contributor Jen Snoots, accessed March 24, 2012Newspaper article, Sen. Bloomer, 71, Drops Dead at Vt. Assembly, Boston Globe, February 22, 1963 Family Asa Bloomer's sons Robert A. Bloomer (1921–1999) and John H. Bloomer, Sr. (1930–1995) both served in the Vermont Senate. Robert was Senate President from 1975 to 1985 and John served as President of the Senate from 1993 to 1995.Newspaper article, John Bloomer; Vermont Legislator, 64, New York Times, January 11, 1995Obituary, Ex-Vermont State Senator Robert Bloomer, by Associated Press, New York Newsday, December 8, 1999 Judith Wener Bloomer Crowley (born 1936), the wife of John H. Bloomer, Sr. and mother of John H. Bloomer, Jr. served in the Vermont Senate from 1995 to 1997 and in the Vermont House from 2001 to 2005.Journal of the Vermont Senate, published by Vermont Senate, February 9, 1995 John H. Bloomer, Jr. (born 1960) served in the Vermont Senate from 1997 to 2005. In 2011 he was appointed Secretary of the Senate.Newspaper article, John Bloomer returns to the Senate in a new role, by Nancy Remsen, Burlington Free Press, January 4, 2011 Legacy The state office building in the city of Rutland was named for Asa Bloomer in 1999.Vermont Statutes Annotated, published by Equity Publishing Corporation, 1999, page 111 References Category:1891 births Category:1963 deaths Category:People from Rutland County, Vermont Category:American military personnel of World War I Category:Vermont Republicans Category:Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Category:Speakers of the Vermont House of Representatives Category:Vermont State Senators Category:Vermont lawyers Category:University of Vermont alumni Category:Yale Law School alumni